


The Chancellor's Feast

by ThePugAddict



Category: Final Fantasy XV
Genre: Blood Drinking, Blood and Gore, Eventual Smut, F/M, Horror, Other Additional Tags to Be Added, Reader-Insert, Vampire AU, Warnings May Change, fem!reader - Freeform, vampire!ardyn
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2017-07-20
Updated: 2017-07-28
Packaged: 2018-12-04 17:13:35
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 2
Words: 3,571
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/11559732
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/ThePugAddict/pseuds/ThePugAddict
Summary: Working in Emperor Iedolas Aldercapt's palace as an ordinary maid, you never believed that the desirable Chancellor Ardyn Izunia would notice you. Now, out of the blue, he has granted you a generous invitation to have a luxurious dinner with him... in secret. Skeptical but willing to get on his good side, you accept the invitation. Is this an opportunity to experience a magical evening of blooming romance? Or are you in for a night that turns so creepy that you'll fear for your life?





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> I know. I know. It's a little bit early for Halloween. But I've been meaning to do something like this for a long time. Now that my schedule has been clearing up a bit, I couldn't resist but vomit this onto my computer screen while I still had the motivation.
> 
> Enjoy!

Weren’t you a lucky girl?

 

Whom was ever granted the opportunity to wine and dine in the halls of the historical Gramina Manor? Surely only someone valued by a member of the emperor’s circle. Nevertheless, you tried very hard not to get too flattered by the invitation. When it came to interacting with the elites of Niflheim, you didn’t feel special in the slightest, and the private context of this meeting was putting you off even more. Wonderful, but it just didn’t feel right.

 

Out of all people, it was none other than the second most powerful man in the empire who handed you this invitation. Ardyn Izunia, the Chancellor of Niflheim. Right hand of the grand old Emperor Iedolas Aldercapt himself.

 

Dear gods. What a show he was. If no one had known any better, people would’ve thought he walked right out of a story book. To the delegates, he was famous for his silver tongue and his quirks, but beyond the doors of the council room, he wasn’t any more desired for his personality than he was for his peculiarly good looks. No one could really put a finger to what always made him one of the most striking people in the room. If anything, it spooked beholders and even sparked frustration amongst the most conceited people. How was it possible that a strange old man was _far_ more attractive than even the most dashing young men of the court, the ones dressed in the finest white suits and robes, their shining hairs swept into the most beautiful locks? But alas, it was so. No one could deny it. That man had wound up becoming every maiden’s fantasy. Including yours.

 

With only one hand, you could count how many times you _didn’t_ fantasize about the chancellor for hours after seeing his face. Even the very mention of his name would give you a fever. At work, you always found it tough to concentrate when the people around you were talking about him—it really didn’t help that you were a maid in the Emperor’s palace, where the man’s name was a popular noun in everyone’s vocabulary. Many of those poor, precious antiques on the shelves had almost lost their lives because of it. Only one casualty had ever happened in your career when you once overheard some of the maids exchanging rumors about Chancellor Izunia’s weekend vacation in Galdin Quay. It only took a brief intruding fantasy of the gentleman in a swimsuit that lead to the demise of the vase you were cleaning off at the same time. Oh, it was no matter: Florence had only cut your paycheck in half that month to pay for the damage.

 

Though as badly as you craved Ardyn Iznunia, you tried not to get your hopes up. Being so much lower on the social ladder, you never expected the chancellor to acknowledge your existence; the closest you’d usually get to him was witnessing him pass by whenever you were cleaning in the East wing.

 

But this? Getting acquainted with you and then inviting you to dinner out at the Aldercapt’s summer estate? That was completely out of the question. You were tremendously thrilled about it until he stated that the rendezvous had to be “kept in the strictest confidentiality.” No one was to know that your evening ever took place. Not even the birds or mice could know. _It had to be taken to your grave_.

 

When you asked why, he merely shrugged, smiled his hallmark charismatic smile and explained that he didn’t wish to betray the emperor’s trust. Though Ardyn had been granted exclusive permission to the manor whenever he pleased (however the hell he got that), the emperor surely would’ve been enraged knowing that his chancellor had invited a common stranger onto his property. His request was understandable, but at the same time it made your stomach feel a little sour. What a perfect reminder of how much you didn’t belong with his kind. Was he expecting to gain something in return for this trespass? Not to mention, it wasn’t uncommon for Niflheim officials to try to start little flings with the palace maids (though only a few scandals over the last decade ever became public knowledge). Just because he was the emperor’s gorgeous right hand didn’t mean you’d lower your standards.  In all honesty, you didn’t know whether to feel flattered or insulted.

 

Regardless, you had no choice. To turn down Ardyn’s invitation would’ve been ill-mannered. You didn’t want to hit things off the wrong way with such a powerful man—a desirable one at that. And so, you accepted his invitation.

 

To your shock, there would be no waiting for this get-together. Right then and there was when Ardyn had set all plans: he would come pick you up, drive you out to the estate, have some dinner there, then have you back at your home by midnight. When you asked what day, his reply was very keen. “ _Tonight_.”

 

Now, with so little time to prepare, one serious issue was lingering—what were you going to wear?

 

You felt like you were ready to scream. Your date’s arrival was in one hour, and you were still standing there in front of your closet, rummaging through your mess of clothes for anything semi-decent. You pictured this night to be a fancy occasion, but you didn’t seem to have anything appropriate. All your dresses were either too casual, too stupid, too worn-out, or a combination of all three. Due to the time crunch, you didn’t have any time today to stop at a local shop for an outfit, and it was much too late to search anywhere right now. The best thing you could find was a solid blue peplum. You sighed, holding the piece in front of you with a snarl upon your lips. It was pretty, but it would make you look less like an aristocratic lady and more like a plain Jane in a stuffy old office building. “Dammit,” you cursed through your teeth. “He couldn’t have waited at least _a day_?”

 

_Knock. Knock. Knock._

 

Your heart thumped so hard that you almost dropped the dress. In your racing thoughts, you prayed to the Six that it wasn’t Ardyn at your front door right now. Quickly, you glanced over at the alarm clock on your dresser. He wasn’t supposed to be here for another hour; not from what you remembered. Good gods, what if he was actually right on time? What if you were somehow thinking of the wrong time? Dropping the dress onto the floor, you grabbed your fuzzy robe off the hook on your wall and threw it around yourself, making your way out of the bedroom and into your living room. With your nerves still buzzing, you headed straight for the front door, but you stopped yourself before reaching for the handle. Discreetly, you stood on your toes, then brought your eye to the small glass peephole.

 

To your surprise, no one was standing there.

 

Your heart began to settle, but you still weren’t convinced. You grabbed the handle and pressed down, opening the door slowly. As you carefully stepped forward, your eyes briefly scanned the outside view in case the unknown knocker had walked off.

 

Again, you saw no one. No sound of footsteps. No car. Even in the darkest shadows, not a figure stirred.

 

You stood in the doorway, puzzled. It hadn’t taken you _that_ long to answer. There was no way the person could’ve gotten that far. Sure, they could’ve driven away, but even then, you would’ve at least heard the engine. Maybe they were still walking down the sidewalk? Curiously, you peeked your head out and took a step forward.

 

That was when your toe hit against something light. The sudden sensation forced a quick gasp out of you, and you looked down to see something that made things even more bizarre. Placed right against your door was a small box, neatly decorated with floral wrapping paper and tied up with a satin red ribbon—quite snazzy packaging, to say the least. What made your skin crawl, however, was the tag attached to the bow, displaying your first name in cursive handwriting. For a moment, you gazed down at the pretty little object, completely unsure how to feel about this peculiar surprise. How nice, but how… weird?

 

You bent over and picked up the package. The contents—whatever they might’ve been—had felt pretty light. With the package tucked beneath your arm, you walked back into your house and shut the door behind you. While you were typically forgetful about locking your door at night, some uncanny itch made you _double_ -lock it this time before retreating to your bedroom.

 

You didn’t have much time left to get ready, but the curiosity was killing you. You strode over to your bed and carelessly tossed a few dresses out of the way to clear a spot for the package. When dropping it onto the bed, you noticed that the white nametag had a fold much like a small card, and as you narrowed your sight at the little space in between, you spotted some writing inside. You slipped your thumb into the space and opened it up to see a brief note, written in the same small handwriting as your name was on the front. The font was in a less legible cursive, forcing you to squint hard as you read.

 

_A little soupçon of elegance for tonight. I trust you will have this on when I see you._

_~ Ardyn_

Upon seeing the name, it rode on an astonished whisper from your lips. Good gods, that name. That name was so rousing that it could wake up the dead. Even the blood in your veins rushed quicker when you said it. Ardyn really _was_ at your door?! No, it couldn’t have been; why would he come here and leave only to return an hour later? And to drop off a _gift_? Maybe he sent someone to do it for him? These and many more questions congested your mind as you untied the bow and tugged the red ribbons off the box. Both pieces of the box were wrapped separately, so it was easy for you to slide off the lid. Finally, after tossing the lid to the side, you folded open a few layers of tissue paper until your gift was unveiled.

 

Like waxing moons, your eyes were slowly growing wide.

 

Dear sweet Six up above. Had you never seen such blood-red velvet in your entire life?


	2. Chapter 2

Chancellor Ardyn Izunia was a man of show. _Of course_ he was going to start the night off the way all classic dates begin: pulling up to your house in an expensive car, ringing your doorbell, standing at your door with a bouquet of roses. And oh, let’s not forget the part where he looks _stunning_. What else were you expecting?

 

Upon looking at you, amber eyes lit up like candle flames. “I must say,” he emphasized, theatrically placing a hand to his heart. “My fashion instincts didn’t deceive me. You look quite fetching in red, Miss [Y/N].”

 

You had done exactly as told. Now, in all your finest you stood before the chancellor, body embellished in the velvet that was so generously gifted to you—an evening gown, long and sultry. The fine, shimmery cloth poured fittingly down your figure like a thick, rich scarlet fountain trickling all the way down to your ankles. You didn’t doubt him for a second when he mentioned “fashion instincts,” and eerily enough, he had even picked out the correct size. Indeed, this piece was perfect, perhaps even the most beautiful thing you currently owned. However, there was one thing about it that you just couldn’t get over.

 

The color. The bright red was classy, but its depth gave you a weird feeling. To be honest, the fabric was so red, so flowy, that it wouldn’t stop reminding you of something liquid. In particular, either wine or—

 

“Oh! Do you have a vase for these, my dear?”

 

You blinked a few times, shifting your attention from Ardyn to the bouquet in his arms. You hadn’t noticed that your cheeks were already dusted with a faint shade of pink from looking up into his face, but now from observing the astonishing number of flowers, the pink had turned to a shade that essentially matched your dress. About ten or twelve blooming red roses were in the bouquet, wrapped up neatly in a blush-colored tissue paper. Cradling this lovely gesture with both hands, the man handed the roses down to you. “If not, then no matter,” he added. “I could always get one for you tomorrow.”

 

“N-no no, it’s fine,” you said, shaking your head and taking the roses, ignoring all the sudden flares of warmth teasing your face. “I have one on my kitchen table.”

 

“Splendid.”

 

You put your soft smile back on and gave him a nod. “If you don’t mind, I’m going to put these in now… Just so they don’t wilt while we’re out.” You turned around and briskly made your way across the room towards the kitchen doorway. When it occurred to you that Ardyn was still standing outside, you glanced over your shoulder at him, nearly coming to a stop. “Oh! You can come in,” you said with your smile shifting awkwardly. _Well, that was kind of embarrassing. Why didn’t I ask him_ before _I rushed back in like an idiot?_

 

With pleasure, Ardyn stepped into the house and shut the door behind him. Meanwhile, in your little kitchen, you looked at the table next to the wall and spotted the white vase in the middle. The vase already had two carnations in it, but at this point the flowers were a bit too withered to stay on display. One of the flower petals had even fallen onto the table, now a piece of dried-up debris. You snatched up the old carnations from out of the vase, tossing them into the garbage can, then grabbed the vase and brought it to the sink. While you were in the middle of refilling and rearranging the roses, you could hear Ardyn speaking out from the other room. “Might I say what a lovely little home you have, Miss [Y/N]?”

 

Your cheeks flared pink again. His voice sounded sincere, but you felt differently than he did about the house. It certainly wasn’t a bad place to live. Not at all. In fact, you lived in one of the nicest suburban neighborhoods around these parts. Still, with all the large, grandiose places the chancellor had seen—and even perhaps lived in—this place surely paled in comparison. It wasn’t even that furnished, either: most of the furniture was handed down to you from others, and there wasn’t much decoration besides some photos of you with family and college friends, plus a single bachelor’s degree in a frame on your wall—one that you hadn’t been able to use since you came to Gralea. “It isn’t much,” you replied. The fresh roses, now sitting pleasantly upon the kitchen table, had suddenly added a modest pop of beauty. “But thank you.”

 

You heard a high-pitched hum. “It’s an ideal place for a single lady to live,” he said. “I assume they pay the maids very well?”

 

You walked back into the living room. “It _does_ help me pay the bills. And my student loans.”

 

Ardyn had made himself comfortable on your couch, gazing leisurely at some of the pictures on the wall. When you reappeared, he looked over at you and smiled candidly. “Oh, without a doubt, you girls deserve it. The staff does such a _wonderful_ job keeping the imperial residence beautiful. Politics gets so tedious sometimes, you know. But _nothing_ alleviates the pain more than for a man to walk into work and to find himself in a nice, clean space to do all his thinking. As they always say, a clear space means a clear mind. No?”

 

Naturally, you smiled back, and though you tried not to show it, you were a little surprised at his demeanor. Were you _sure_ that an emperor’s associate was sitting in your house and talking to you right now? Despite such a common setting, he didn’t look uncomfortable or displeased in the slightest. And, contrary to all those rumors circling around about him in the palace, he wasn’t behaving like a weirdo, either. Ardyn was acting as if he were a normal human being... No, scratch that out. He _was_ a normal human being.

 

Right? Wasn’t he?

 

Besides randomly inviting you to dinner and not letting you tell anyone?

 

And making you wear a dress that _he_ picked out for you?

 

Ardyn stood up and smoothed out his coat. “Love to stay here and talk, Miss [Y/N]. But the night won’t be young forever. We have an enchanting evening awaiting us.”

 

Your pulse was rousing back up. “Right,” you said, trying not to swallow. Returning to the front door, you grabbed your purse from off a hook. The chancellor had already gotten to the front door before you did; as you were checking your purse for your keys and phone, he opened the door and stood beside it, mannerly waiting for you to pass through first. You did, and as you walked past him, you believed for a second that, from the corner of your eye, you spotted his amber eyes gawking at your dress. Very quickly did you dismiss the thought, quietly assuring yourself that you were just imagining things. After all, it would’ve been stupid to trick yourself to see what you _wanted_ to see, right? Even so, you couldn’t help those butterflies going crazy in your stomach.

 

After locking the house, the two of you proceeded down the walkway into the warm summer night. From the light of the full moon, you were able to get a good look at the car parked in front of your house. To your surprise, it wasn’t the sexy upscale black limousine you had been imagining. Rather, it was quite an average-looking automobile, maybe even crossing over the lines of ugly. It was an older Vixen Constellation, topless and painted magenta with a large white stripe down the center of its front and rear. The least attractive feature was the little red ball on the end of the antenna, which honestly looked like those red “puff balls” hanging above the heads of moogles. Of course, that wasn’t going to stop you from telling a little white lie to flatter Ardyn. “You have a really nice car. I love convertibles.”

 

“Oh. Why _thank you_ ,” the chancellor responded cheerfully. He had placed his hand on his chest again, this time with a little more pride. “She’s a dear old thing to me.” Reaching into the inside of his coat, he pulled out a set of keys, then clicked a remote button that unlocked the car. After escorting you around the front of the vehicle, he opened the passenger door for you and made a motion with his hand. “After you, my lady.”

 

“Thank you,” you replied. Carefully, you stepped in and sat down on the leather seat. After Ardyn closed the car door, you took a deep breath, trying as hard as you could to settle the shaky feeling in your limbs. Even if you wanted to, there was no turning back now. Ardyn said there would just be dinner, but six only knew what he actually had in store for you tonight. Maybe he was telling the truth. Maybe not. Either way, his plans _were_ going to unfold, you _were_ going to be there, and…

 

Oh, snap out of it. What the hell were you thinking? You were just letting your imagination run wild. You weren’t being held prisoner, for gods’ sake. You were _invited_ , and you _agreed_. And seriously, why would you turn down a date—if that’s what you could call it—with none other than the dashing Chancellor of Niflheim?

 

It was just dinner with someone you admired. Right?

 

Your seat suddenly vibrated from the starting engine. You looked over at Ardyn while he slightly adjusted the mirror and then looked closer into it afterwards as if to check his reflection. “How long will it take us to get there?” you asked.

 

Ardyn resettled himself in his seat. “Hmmh… if we take the highway, then I’d say about forty minutes.”

 

Your lips curled into a smile. “Outside the city,” you stated softly. “It must be a very beautiful place, then.”

 

His face turned towards you. Charmingly, he gave you a smirk, brow raising slightly. “ _Breathtaking_ ,” he emphasized.

 

_You mean as breathtaking as that face of yours?_

 

Ardyn looked away and shifted the gears between your seats. You set your purse down on the floor next to your feet, then crossed your legs while looking out to the side, just so he wouldn’t notice your blushing or jittering. The car started to go forward, gradually accelerating until it finally went down the road at a modest speed. And then, at last, off you were taken into the night, escorted by none other than the Chancellor of Niflheim himself.

 

During the long ride, you could’ve sworn you saw him stare at your dress at least twelve times.


End file.
